Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cape Town and Chur

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,527 a month against $3,290 in Chur, rent and utilities included – about $21,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

74

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index
159

Cost of Living Index in Chur
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Chur Living Index

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Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,527

/mo nomad

Chur

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$3,290

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cape Town and in Chur

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Cape Town and in Chur actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,527 per month in Cape Town vs $3,290 in Chur, rent included.

Cape Town $1,527
Chur $3,290

A couple spends around $2,417 per month in Cape Town vs $5,156 in Chur, rent included.

Cape Town $2,417
Chur $5,156

A family of three spends $3,306 per month in Cape Town vs $7,022 in Chur, rent included.

Cape Town $3,306
Chur $7,022

Cape Town is about 54% cheaper than Chur, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Cape Town and Chur sit above the global median – Cape Town by 13%, Chur by 143%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.01 R 197

$29.12 CHF 23.82

-58.76%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$42.92 R 703

$110 CHF 90.2

-61.09%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.15 R 101

$16.24 CHF 13.28

-62.13%

Cappuccino

$2.37 R 38.81

$5.79 CHF 4.74

-59.07%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.27 R 20.84

$5.75 CHF 4.70

-77.91%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.94 R 15.37

$5.18 CHF 4.23

-81.85%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.96 R 48.48

$8.49 CHF 6.94

-65.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.69 R 60.5

$8.71 CHF 7.13

-57.63%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.32 R 21.61

$2.18 CHF 1.78

-39.45%

White Bread (500g)

$1.21 R 19.75

$3.37 CHF 2.76

-64.09%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.20 R 36.05

$4.25 CHF 3.48

-48.24%

Eggs

$3.10 R 50.8

$7.72 CHF 6.32

-59.84%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.73 R 143

$27.37 CHF 22.39

-68.10%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.89 R 113

$26.48 CHF 21.66

-73.98%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.26 R 152

$39.50 CHF 32.31

-76.56%

Apples (1kg)

$1.83 R 29.90

$3.61 CHF 2.95

-49.31%

Banana (1kg)

$1.95 R 31.94

$2.16 CHF 1.76

-9.72%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.66 R 27.16

$2.60 CHF 2.13

-36.15%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.14 R 34.99

$4.72 CHF 3.86

-54.66%

Potato (1kg)

$1.58 R 25.86

$1.98 CHF 1.62

-20.20%

Onion (1kg)

$1.47 R 24.15

$2.27 CHF 1.86

-35.24%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.35 R 22.05

$2.35 CHF 1.92

-42.55%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.14 R 18.75

$1.37 CHF 1.12

-16.79%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.58 R 58.6

$10.84 CHF 8.87

-66.97%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.05 R 99.2

$13.31 CHF 10.88

-54.55%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 R 22.82

$2.76 CHF 2.26

-49.64%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.18 R 35.69

$3.49 CHF 2.86

-37.54%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.40 R 22.88

$5.33 CHF 4.36

-73.73%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$60.8 R 995

$187 CHF 153

-67.46%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.93 R 15.18

$7.86 CHF 6.43

-88.17%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.90 R 14.75

$4.96 CHF 4.06

-81.85%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.96 R 81.3

$87.2 CHF 71.4

-94.31%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.54 R 25.23

$2.16 CHF 1.77

-28.70%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$35.4K R 579.4K

$40.1K CHF 32.8K

-11.71%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$33.4K R 546.7K

$38.0K CHF 31.1K

-12.15%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$117 R 1,918

$236 CHF 193

-50.33%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$25.71 R 421

$32.50 CHF 26.58

-20.89%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.41 R 646

$55.4 CHF 45.34

-28.90%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.6 R 846

$81.8 CHF 66.9

-36.88%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.35 R 186

$33.77 CHF 27.62

-66.39%

Cinema Ticket

$8.89 R 146

$22.78 CHF 18.64

-60.97%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$308 R 5,040

$2,471 CHF 2,021

-87.55%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,141 R 133.4K

$38.2K CHF 31.2K

-78.68%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.4 R 940

$92.3 CHF 75.5

-37.85%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.75 R 520

$48.62 CHF 39.76

-34.70%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$116 R 1,900

$120 CHF 98.2

-3.46%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$101 R 1,650

$176 CHF 144

-42.82%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,047 R 17.1K

$1,697 CHF 1,388

-38.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$669 R 11.0K

$1,362 CHF 1,114

-50.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,861 R 30.5K

$3,112 CHF 2,545

-40.22%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,407 R 23.1K

$2,597 CHF 2,124

-45.80%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,410 R 39.5K

$7,428 CHF 6,076

-67.55%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,570 R 25.7K

$5,447 CHF 4,455

-71.19%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,630 R 26.7K

$8,419 CHF 6,886

-80.64%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.89

1.72

533.14%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Cape Town: November 2, 2026

Last update for Chur: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Cape Town

$669 43.8%

Chur

$1.4K 41.4% 104% $693

Groceries & Markets

Cape Town

$223 14.6%

Chur

$585 17.8% 162% $362

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cape Town

$182 11.9%

Chur

$324 9.8% 77.6% $141

Eating Out

Cape Town

$174 11.4%

Chur

$455 13.8% 161% $281

Clothing & Footwear

Cape Town

$138 9%

Chur

$197 6% 43% $59

Getting Around

Cape Town

$72 4.7%

Chur

$241 7.3% 235% $169

Sport & Entertainment

Cape Town

$69 4.5%

Chur

$127 3.9% 83.5% $58

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,047 in Cape Town versus $1,697 in Chur. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Chur are about 5.2 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43 in Cape Town versus $110 in Chur. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $223 vs $585 – making Cape Town the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🇨🇭 Chur

🕒 Local time

00:57 12:57 AM

23:57 11:57 PM

1 h behind Cape Town

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,740,026 Capital

37,082

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Swiss Franc CHF Fr

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.1 USD

100 ZAR = 5.44 EUR

1 CHF = 1.22 USD

1 CHF = 1.09 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CHF, USD, EUR to ZAR – South African Rand Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇿🇦 South African Rand (R)

South African Rand exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 16.38 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.1 USD). 1 EUR = 18.39 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.44 EUR).

Swiss Franc exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 0.818 CHF (1 CHF = 1.22 USD). 1 EUR = 0.918 CHF (1 CHF = 1.09 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Cape Town Chur 9,030 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Cape Town
Chur

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Cape Town vs Chur: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Chur costs about 115% more than Cape Town, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,291 per month in Cape Town and $4,935 in Chur. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Cape Town, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $1,047 there versus $1,697 in Chur.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,527 in Cape Town and $3,290 in Chur. That makes Cape Town about 54% cheaper.

Public transport costs about 67% less in Cape Town. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

$1,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $1,527 in Cape Town and $3,290 in Chur. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

Families tend to lean toward Cape Town – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

If budget matters most, go with Cape Town. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Chur makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.